While hilsa is known as much-coveted fish among Bangalees, it is surprising that it remains unsold and is being stockpiled in cold storages.
But the markets have been flooded with imported Chokori and Chandria fishes which almost look like Bangladeshi hilsa.
However, the tastes are not as rich as that of the hilsa and consumers are mistaking them with Bangladesh’s most delicious fish.
In the kitchen markets, vendors are also deceiving the consumers who prefer the fish for cheaper rates being oblivious of its purity.
The hilsa traders said they were losing local market to the low quality and cheap Chokori and Chandria fishes.
The traders said they can neither sell hilsa in local market due to price differences nor can export because of an official ban, leading them to suffer huge losses every day.
According to them, a stock of 2,000 tonnes of hilsa have remained piled up for months, damaging the quality and taste of the catches.
Bangladesh Marine Fisheries Association sent a letter recently to the commerce ministry making the allegations and urging to resolve the matter.
According to an official source, the commerce ministry will hold an inter-ministerial meeting today to discuss the matters.
Visits to the city’s kitchen market found that the market was flooded with imported Chokori and Chandria fishes.
A total of 12,000 tonnes of Chokori and Chandria were imported from Myanmar, Vietnam and Oman in last seven months.
As they are cheap in prices, the consumers buy them and do not think of tastes, said hilsa traders, adding the consumers are also unaware about the fish that if they are really hilsa.
When contacted, Commerce Secretary Mahbub Ahmed, however, declined to make any detailed comment and said the ministry was looking into the allegations and demands made by the traders.
A senior commerce ministry official said the allegations should be checked seriously.
“We may hold an inter-ministerial meeting today to discuss the issues,” the official said.
Earlier on July 31, 2012, the government imposed a ban on export of hisla fish to keep its prices at the affordable level in the local market.
Bangladesh’s fishermen catch 6-7 lakh tonnes of hilsa annually.
India’s West Bengal state has a great demand of Bangladeshi hilsa and if the export is open again, the number of total consumers in the both countries will become 32 crore.
Besides, a recent study conducted by the Bangladesh Fish Research Institution showed that the local market of hilsa has shrunk due to water pollution.
The local traders said the import of hilsa-like fishes has contributed to the shrinking of real hilsa demand.
But a stockholder, however, said if government goes to put high restrictions on import for resolving the current issue, the price of even local katla fish will shoot up to Tk400 per piece from the present Tk150 per piece.
He, however, said the export of hilsa should be lifted as the government is now losing revenues.
“If the hilsa worth Tk2,000 crore in cold storages can be exported, the government will earn Tk500 crore revenue,” he said.
Vice President of Bangladesh Fish Exporters and Importers Association, SA Wahab also said “the government is losing huge amount of revenue” due to export ban.
